Earthworm Jim 2 is a sequel to the original the original game, and the second installment in the Earthworm Jim video game series. The music was composed by game music veteran Tommy Tallarico, who also composed the music for the first game and its 2010 HD remake.

Contents

Releases

Shiny Entertainment first released Earthworm Jim 2 simultaneously on the SegaMega Drive/Genesis, NintendoSNES, and the PC operating system MS-DOS. The Mega Drive version was generally regarded as having the best graphics of the console versions, although the SNES version had different and more varied background artwork to the levels, albeit mostly similar.

Screaming Pink, Inc. developed enhanced versions released on the Sega Channel, SonyPlayStation and Sega Saturn. All these versions contained all levels. The latter two versions contained even more radically different, and more detailed, level background artwork than seen in earlier versions of the game.[1]

Like the original game, Earthworm Jim 2 contains a lot of irreverent, surrealist humor. It also features more diverse gameplay than the original, with each stage having a unique different style and mission, often with varied gameplay and objectives to complete from stage to stage, as well as various new weapons to obtain and use.

Levels & Characters

Levels

Listed below, in order of appearance from the original Sega Genesis release of the game, are the levels/stages found in Earthworm Jim 2. The alternate titles are derived from both the instruction manual and ports of the game.

Reception

Earthworm Jim 2 met with very positive critical reception upon release. Critics praised its visuals, audio, in-game soundtrack, and use of artistic and technical graphics across all platforms it appeared on, yet criticized the PC MS-DOS version for excluding a level (Lorenzen's Soil) found the console versions of the game.

The game was also praised for its technical achievements in squeezing performance out of the SEGA Genesis and Super Nintendo Entertainment System, garnering attention from television programs such as Bad Influence! in Britain, which ran a segment on The Making of Earthworm Jim 2. The network was impressed with the game's animation, the use of impressive in-game physics in the Lorenzen's Soil level, as well as line-scrolling that made it appear the game was being played on top of 3-dimensional backgrounds in the Puppy Love levels.

Earthworm Jim 2 was also praised for being a more varied experience than its predecessor, with the general consensus among critics being that every level felt different than the one that came before it, and that having to accomplish certain goals within these levels made for a more compelling gaming experience. One downside that critics seemed to agree on was that the game was easier and shorter than its predecessor.

On MobyGames, the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis version of the game is the highest rated version, with a critic score of 90%, and a user rating of 4.2 out of 5.[2]

Sega Magazine gave the Genesis version a 94%, citing the variety of gameplay styles with "every one, in every way, sickeningly well implemented."[3]

On GameRankings, the Nintendo SNES version is the highest rated at 88%.[4]. Additionally, the Sega Saturn version has a rating of 85%[5], the Mega Drive / Genesis version has a rating of 80%[6], and 78% for the PlayStation version[7]. The Game Boy Advance version is the lowest rated at 38%.[8]

The 2002 Game Boy Advance version was widely criticized for poor graphics, bad sound and music, and very glitchy gameplay.[9][10]

The 2009 Nintendo Wii version was generally well recieved, although often said to be not as good as the original. It was rated 70% by Nintendo Life magazine.[11]